Aspiratory assembly



Sept. 1, 1964 R. e. SIDEBOTTOM 3,146,726

ASPIRATOR ASSEMBLY Filed July 24, 1962 Y/NI/EN 70,?

19016420 6 Swasorrom WW WWW ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,146,726 ASPIRATOR ASSEMBLY Richard G. Sidehottom, St, Paul, Minn, assignor to Union Tank Car Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of New Jersey Filed July 24, 1962, Ser. No. 212,021

7 Claims. (Cl. 103-462) This invention relates to aspirators or injectors and has for its principal object to provide a novel, simple, compact aspirator which is readily accessible and removable from a supporting casing or housing.

Another object is to provide an aspirator unit having an injector nozzle and venturi tube member which are flat washer-like members confined in a tubular liner member fitting in, and readily removable from, a tubular body defining inlet, outlet and suction chambers.

A further and particular object is to provide an aspirator assembly of the class described which is arranged to direct liquid upwardly from an inlet chamber through a suction chamber and thence to an outlet chamber above the suction chamber, whereby to minimize malfunctioning caused by air blocks, bleeding of air into a suction line and by accumulations of air bubbles entrained in the liquid under super-atmospheric pressure and released therefrom when the liquid is subjected to reduced or subatmospheric pressure.

My invention also includes certain other novel features of construction which will appear and be more fully pointed out in the following specification and claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawing:

FIGURE 1 is a central vertical sectional view showing a preferred embodiment of my improved aspirator assembly, including a casing defining an axially elongated tubular chamber and inlet and outlet ports;

FIG. 2 is a part side elevational view and part central vertical sectional view showing the aspirator assembly on a larger scale and separately from the casing;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional View taken on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2, and

FIG. 4 is another horizontal sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

As shown in FIG. 1, the assembly includes a unitary casing indicated generally by the numeral defining a vertically elongated cylindrical chamber 11 which extends downwardly from the upper side of the casing to an annular shoulder 12 formed on the upper face of an annular flange 13. A lower chamber 14 is formed in the casing below the flange 13 and is in continuous communication with an inlet port 15 adapted to be connected to a source of fluid under pressure. A second inlet port 16, hereinafter referred to as the middle port or suction port, communicates with the chamber 11 near the lower end thereof. A second or upper end port 17 communicates with an annular recess 18 formed in a wall of the chamber 11 and is in continuous communication with a chamber 19 formed in a tubular body 20 through radial passages 21, best shown in FIG. 3.

Tubular body 20 has a closed upper end 22, an open lower end 23 and is removably connected to the casing 10 by screw threads 24. Passages 25 are formed in the lower or skirt portion of the member 20 to communicate with the inlet port 16. A cylindrical outer surface of the body 20 fits in the chamber 11 and is formed with annular grooves adapted to contain resilient sealing rings 26 and 27 for sealing the connection between the members 20 and 10 above and below the passages 25.

Confined within the lower portion of the body 20 is a tubular liner, indicated generally by the numeral 28, having an upper end surface fitting against an annular shoulder 29 formed in the body 20. The tubular liner 28 is open at its upper and lower ends. Midway between its upper and lower ends an inwardly projecting annular flange 30 is provided as an abutment for the upper face of an injector nozzle 31 and the lower face of a venturi disk 32. The injector nozzle has an upwardly directed conical nozzle passage 33 converging to a restricted orifice 33a disposed to discharge fluid under pressure into and through a venturi passage 34 formed in the disk 32 in axial alignment with the nozzle passage. A suction chamber 35 is interposed between the nozzle 31 and venturi disk 32, and radially extending passages 36 are formed in the tubular liner 28 to place the chamber 35 in continuous communication with the passages 25 and port 16. To seal the outer peripheral surface of the liner 28 relative to the inner peripheral surface of the body 20 O-ring sealing members 37 are mounted in annular grooves formed in the liner 28 above and below the passages 36. As shown in FIG. 1, a suitable screen 38 is provided in the chamber 14 so that fluid under pressure entering through the port 15 passes through the screen to the lower side of the injector nozzle 31.

As indicated in FIG. 2, the injector nozzle 31 and venturi disk 32 are confined in the tubular liner 28 by lip members 39 and 40 respectively. The tubular liner 28 is preferably molded from a somewhat elastic material, e.g., polyethylene, which is soft enough to permit the lip members 39 and 40 to be sprung back and allow the flat Washer-like members 31 and 32 to be pressed into place in contact with the flange 30. A seal ring 41 (FIG. 1) is provided at the junction of the casing 10 and tubular body 20.

To facilitate removal of the assembly from the casing 10, the body 20 is formed with an upwardly projecting head 22a to which a wrench may be applied for turning the body 20 when it is to be assembled with the casing 10 or removed from the threaded opening in the casing.

In recent years injectors have been used extensively in connection with valve mechanism for controlling automatic and semi-automatic water softeners. My improved aspirator is particularly, although not exclusively, adapted for use in water softening apparatus wherein a liquid regenerant or brine is fed to the port 16 and water at line pressure is supplied to the inlet port 15, usually within the range 15 to 50 psi My improved aspirator assembly may be mounted in the upper portion of a casing for flow control valve mechanism. During the regenerating cycle water under pressure is supplied to the port 15 and flows through the screen 38 to the lower side of the injector nozzle 31, and thence through the conical passage 33, orifice 33a, chamber 35 and venturi passage 34 to the chamber 19 above the venturi. From this chamber the solution passesthrough the radial passages 21 to the outlet port 17. Air which is often entrained with the Water entering through the port 15 and/ or the regenerant entering through the port 16, rises and is carried by upwardly flowing liquid through the chamber 35, venturi passage 34, outlet passages 21 and port 17. Extensive tests have shown that failures of the aspirator caused by entrapped air occur much less frequently with my up-fiow aspirator than in aspirators wherein the flow is directed downwardly or laterally.

I claim:

1. An aspirator assembly comprising:

(a) a casing defining an axially elongated tubular chamber and a middle and end ports spaced along said casing in communication with said chamber;

(b) a tubular body fitting in said chamber and having a closed end, an open end, and a closed end chamber, said open end communicating with one of said end ports, and said closed end chamber communicating with the other end port;

(0) a tubular liner member fitting in said tubular body, having an annular internal flange spaced from the ends thereof and formed with a first passage communicating with said middle port;

(!) an injector nozzle fitting in an annular recess at one side of said flange in said liner member; and

(e) a venturi disk fitting in an annular recess in said liner member at the opposite side of said flange and having a venturi passage disposed in axial alignment with said injector nozzle, said injector nozzle and venturi disk being spaced one from the other to define a suction chamber in said tubular liner member communicating with said first passage and middle port.

2. An aspirator assembly in accordance with claim 1 in which said liner member is formed with inwardly projecting lip members at its opposite open ends to confine said injector nozzle and venturi disk respectively in said annular recesses.

3. An aspirator assembly in accordance with claim 2 in which said liner member is formed from a synthetic resin material having sufficient elasticity to permit the passage of said injector nozzle and venturi disk into engagement with said annular flange, past said inwardly projecting lip members.

4. An aspirator assembly in accordance with claim 1 in which said tubular body has a threaded connection with said casing and peripheral sealing means engaging the tubular wall of said chamber at opposite sides of said middle port.

5. An aspirator assembly in accordance with claim 1 in which said casing is formed with an annular shoulder disposed for engagement with the open end of said tubular body and tubular liner member.

6. An aspirator assembly in accordance with claim 1 in which said tubular body and tubular liner member are disposed with their axes substantially vertical and said closed end chamber is disposed above said venturi disk to receive fluid from said venturi passage.

7. An aspirator assembly comprising, a casing defining a vertically elongated tubular chamber, a middle inlet port, a lower inlet port and an upper outlet port spaced along said casing; a vertically elongated tubular body removably fitting in said casing chamber and having a closed upper end and an open lower end and first and second passages communicating respectively with said middle inlet port and upper outlet port; means including an upwardly discharging injector nozzle disposed in the lower portion of said tubular body and defining an inlet chamber communicating with said lower inlet port; means defining a suction chamber extending above said injector nozzle and including a venturi member having a central opening disposed in said tubular body in upwardly spaced relation to said injector nozzle, said suction chamber being in fluid communication with said middle inlet port through said first passage; and an upper end chamber in said tubular body above said venturi member disposed to receive fluid discharged through said venturi member and communicating with said upper outlet port through said second passage.

Pedley July 2, 1912 Stenberg Oct. 25, 1960 

1. AN ASPIRATOR ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: (A) A CASING DEFINING AN AXIALLY ELONGATED TUBULAR CHAMBER AND A MIDDLE AND END PORTS SPACED ALONG SAID CASING IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID CHAMBER; (B) A TUBULAR BODY FITTING IN SAID CHAMBER AND HAVING A CLOSED END, AN OPEN END, AND A CLOSED END CHAMBER, SAID OPEN END COMMUNICATING WITH ONE OF SAID END PORTS, AND SAID CLOSED END CHAMBER COMMUNICATING WITH THE OTHER END PORT; (C) A TUBULAR LINER MEMBER FITTING IN SAID TUBULAR BODY, HAVING AN ANNULAR INTERNAL FLANGE SPACED FROM THE ENDS THEREOF AND FORMED WITH A FIRST PASSAGE COMMUNICATING WITH SAID MIDDLE PORT; (D) AN INJECTOR NOZZLE FITTING IN AN ANNULAR RECESS AT ONE SIDE OF SAID FLANGE IN SAID LINER MEMBER; AND (E) A VENTURI DISK FITTING IN AN ANNULAR RECESS IN SAID LINER MEMBER AT THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID FLANGE AND HAVING A VENTURI PASSAGE DISPOSED IN AXIAL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID INJECTOR NOZZLE, SAID INJECTOR NOZZLE AND VENTURI DISK BEING SPACED ONE FROM THE OTHER TO DEFINE A SUCTION CHAMBER IN SAID TUBULAR LINER MEMBER COMMUNICATING WITH SAID FIRST PASSAGE AND MIDDLE PORT. 